Longer Version: Sometimes it is what isn’t said that is more important than what is said. Simms does not think the Giants will win because Francesa did not put him on the spot. That was by design. So Simms was a nice homer in giving the rah rah go get’m pitch. But his tone was less bold than last week when he firmly stated the Giants would be in it. He did not come off that way to me this time. That spoke volumes.

Major Points:1) The place between the corner and the safety is where Favre is going to try to stick the ball in, and with the ball being harder to grip, this could be the place for a turnover. 2) If Favre has enough pressure and gets a little too aggressive, he can make mistakes. This point was echoed by Troy Aikman.3) The Giants should use the same varied offensive game plan they have used the past few weeks.4) With light winds, this favors Favre.5) Since GB uses almost exclusively man-to-man, there are ways to attack that. (Not going to reiterate what he said, but there are formations and routes that can work.)6) With Favre likely to go quick route against our pass rush, you use zone so that it takes him longer to figure out where to go with the ball. (When you go man, he just goes to his preferred WR.)7) COMPLETE DISAGREEMENT. Simms liked the conservative playcalling at the end of the Dallas game. Simms might be my svengali, but we part company here. I emphatically disagree. And I will go down to the grave knowing that when the secondary is that stripped, you MUST get some first downs in that spot. They have tremendous field position and it is extremely fortunate that we are in the NFC Championship having lived to tell the tale.8) The Giants need to avoid giving up chunks of yardage to the Packers. Make them drive the ball down the field and make a mistake which trips them up. Do not give them the huge catch and run. (This is easier said than done.. the pack are the #1 offense in the entire league in YAC.)

Notice how Simms spent little (if any) time discussing WHY the Giants could do all these things. He laid out a blueprint but by its absence, the implication is that it is an entirely different matter for whether the Giants can execute that.

Before the sugar-coated one-sided pr pieces come out on how wonderful every player is through minicamp and preseason, let’s list objective reasons for why we are going to suck this year.

1) You cannot teach accuracy. There is plenty of room for Manning to improve, but the studies show that QB ratings start leveling off in Y3, and Manning’s was FLAT. Unfortunately we are not going to see a serious jump in his production.

2) Jerry Reese’s plan for Left Tackle is a bust so far. He has been trying to get Cleveland’s LT, but even that would be yet another “stabilizer.” Speaking of stabilizers…

5) There are still medical questions about lisfranc foot injuries in terms of Strahan’s ability to come back at the same pro-bowl level of play. He is 36.

6) There are no medical questions about ACL injuries- Toomer will not be ‘effective’ in his first year back. Considering his age, he is headed toward being cut or becoming that classic “third-down” possesion receiver.

7) You lose something when you take your most recent #1 (Kiwanuka) and try to change his position. Dialing up this guy’s weight like a video control and making him into a different player is rarely pulled off at the level of the NFL. I agree that it would be good to have Kiwanuka and our pro bowl ends on the field at the same time but Kiwanuka is not likely going to be a pro bowl LB, certainly not this year. In fact, he is going to make a few mistakes during games that will cost us.

8) Gilbride and Palmer are retreads. Gilbride deserved a promotion after being part of the problem in Manning’s lack of improvement? Someone explain to me how THIS GUY is going to help Manning. Was Hufnagel the root of all evil and Gilbride blocked from succeeding? I doubt it highly.

9) Coughlin is a retread in a retread year. No one wants to play for us this season because we are dead Coughlin walking. I do not think he motivates his players properly. He treats them equally and that is a mistake. His undoing will come in the latter part of the season when he has them out in pads yet again in practice, sucking whatever energy they have so that they can get the first score and pack the rest of the game in.

10) We still have the same problems at LB and Secondary that we had last year. We are getting the 2006 history lesson that the Lewis system was truly a harm to Webster (and Pierce and Wilson) making plays. I am hopeful this can be the case and that our new coord will make a difference… but either Webster is going to make big improvement or he is gone.

Please note that I specifically did not list the departure of Tiki… I am very bullish on Brandon Jacobs. Of course he will not be able to fill Tiki’s shoes but he will do a very good job wearing down defenses.